Perennial ‘B’ powers to battle tonight

Tim Stammen began his high school basketball career by helping Camden Hills of Rockport defeat Gorham to win the 2002 Class B state championship.

He hopes to end his high school career the same way.

“I think from the beginning of the year we were working for this point right here, getting to the state championship,” said Stammen, a 6-foot-3 senior forward who scored nine points as a freshman when Camden Hills edged Gorham 63-60 in the state final.

The teams meet for the 2005 title tonight at approximately 8:45 p.m. at the Augusta Civic Center in a matchup of Class B’s dominant programs since the mid-1990s.

Camden Hills has won three state championships (1999, 2001 and 2002) and six Eastern B titles since its current run began in 1994. Gorham has won two state titles (1996 and 2000) and six Western B crowns during that span, with five of the regional titles coming in the last six years.

The two have met head to head for the gold ball twice, with Camden Hills earning back-to-back crowns in 2001 and 2002.

In fact, Gorham has lost the last three times it reached the state final, including last year when Erskine Academy defeated the Rams 59-42.

That relative futility has provided the Rams additional motivation in their final game before joining the Class A ranks next season.

“This group of guys has been to the state championship game twice and haven’t won, and they’d like to get over the hump,” said 21st-year Gorham coach Kevin Jenkins.

Both teams bring veteran contingents into the latest renewal of this rivalry.

Camden Hills, at 21-0 one of just two remaining undefeated teams in Maine schoolboy basketball this season – along with Class A Cheverus of Portland – starts four seniors in Stammen, guards Jamey Davis and Will Horn, and 6-4 center Nick Tedford. Junior Cameron Puls is the other starter for 23rd-year Windjammers’ head coach Jeff Hart, while senior David Pike is the top reserve.

Stammen earned MVP honors in the Eastern B tournament by leading Camden Hills past Ellsworth, Presque Isle and Foxcroft Academy, while the 6-3 Davis – like Stammen a member of the 2002 state championship team – also earned All-Tournament honors.

“They just seem to be typical of Camden teams of the past few years,” said Jenkins. “They’ve got a lot of good athletes, good size, good shooters, are very disciplined and they pass well. They’re also pretty deep. It’s hard to find a weakness.”

Gorham (19-2) features 6-4 senior forward Ben Thayer, the Western B tournament MVP who averages 19.8 points per game. Thayer and 6-1 junior guard Jeff Manchester (15.3 ppg) – who missed last season with a broken hand – were both first-team All-Western Maine Conference choices, while 6-2 senior forward Keegan Ballantyne was a third-team choice.

John McKenzie, a 6-3 senior forward who averages 7.8 rebounds a contest, 6-1 junior guard Matt Trask, 6-3 junior forward Josh Tanguay (7.5 rpg) and 5-10 junior point guard Max Bass also are part of the Rams’ playing rotation.

“They’re just like every other Gorham team we’ve played,” said Hart. “They have a lot of guys who know their roles and play them well.”

Second-seeded Gorham defeated top ranked Falmouth 71-46 in Western Maine final to avenge their only two losses of the season. The Rams topped Greely of Cumberland Center in the semifinals and Poland in the quarterfinals.

“It’s going to come down to what every championship game comes down to, which team is going to rebound the best and which team is going to defend the best,” said Hart. “I don’t think either team is going to be bothered by the environment of a championship game.”